Both the Sun and I view this letter as a conditional declaration of war against the United States.

I have little doubt that the Muslim world (even in the United States) understands this clearly (if not it will be explained to them by their Imam’s). I hope and pray that the President and the Congress also understand this.

I also hope that the US press will follow the Sun’s lead in carefully explaining the full implications of this letter to the American public. We are not children. We will not panic. We will become prepared to steel ourselves to whatever the future weeks or months may bring.

There is absolutely no good reason for keeping Americans in the dark, especially when a billion people around the world know what has been done.

Here is the key quote from the NY Sun’s article:

President Ahmadinejad’s letter to President Bush, widely interpreted as a peaceful overture, is in fact a declaration of war. The key sentence in the letter is the closing salutation. In an eight-page text of the letter being circulated by the Council on Foreign Relations, it is left untranslated and rendered as “Vasalam Ala Man Ataba’al hoda.” What this means is “Peace only unto those who follow the true path.”

It is a phrase with historical significance in Islam, for, according to Islamic tradition, in year six of the Hejira – the late 620s – the prophet Mohammad sent letters to the Byzantine emperor and the Sassanid emperor telling them to convert to the true faith of Islam or be conquered. The letters included the same phrase that President Ahmadinejad used to conclude his letter to Mr. Bush. For Mohammad, the letters were a prelude to a Muslim offensive, a war launched for the purpose of imposing Islamic rule over infidels.

Anyone who reads this letter as anything else is either uninformed, in denial or both.

This is the stupidest thing I’ve ever heard. You should not write such nonsense in a time when peace should be the goal. NY Sun is not shy about being so pro-Likud that its loyalty to America should come under question. We, Americans, don’t want to lose any more children for Israel. Let Israel fight its own battles. If this letter is a declaration of war, what do you say about our president’s “Axis of Evil” speech?

Brown

If this guy Ahmadinehad, or what ever his name is, was “declaring war” then why the heck didn’t he come outright and say it.

I’ve read his letter and his other speeches too. He never threatened the US. All he is saying is that the US must change its policies. Just because we back our demands with military threats doesn’t mean that everyone else does too.

He didn’t even threaten Israel in his “wipe Israel off the map” speech. If you had taken the time to read his full speech instead of the excerpts that CNN and FOX fed you, you would be less “uninformed”.

Just because fantasies of an ugly far off country attacking us helps you refrain from masturbating doesn’t mean that you have to spread your thoughts to others.

Milad

Wow dude, you are a freaking idiot, you have to realize that you have no comprehension skills whatsoever and go jump off a cliff

http://ruvysroost.blogspot.com Ruvy in Jerusalem

BoP,

I have only one question for you. Did you read the entire letter or just the key phrase from the NY Sun. I’m not arguing with you here, unlike others. You have attempted to provide historical background to the phrasing of the letter and what it might mean given the context of other letters sent by Moslem leaders to others.

Best regards from Jerusalem,
Ruvy

Bob

This article is ridiculous and based on total misinformation.

You should be ashamed of your baseless lie of a headline.

iran

you know america is a shitty country and so is the zionist regime. you will all die

in the name of god the most compassionate the most merciful

http://www.tbirdofparadise.blogspot.com Bird of Paradise

Dear Bob, I did not make up the headline. The NY Sun did. I am simply expressing my opinion that they may be right.

As I have expressed elsewhere, I hope they (and I) are wrong.

T

The article at the head is correct. America is Mystery Babylon of Revelation 17 & 18 and Great Babylon of Jeremiah 51 & 52 which is utterly destroyed without an inhabitant. It is destroyed by God because of its gross apostacy. Per Deut 28:45 ff, America has broken covenant with the God of the Bible. He raises up her enemies against her. Russia and China join a mix of nations together with the Muslims to do it.

Jer 51:11 Make bright the arrows; gather the shields: the LORD hath raised up the spirit of the kings of the Medes: for his device is against Babylon, to destroy it; because it is the vengeance of the LORD, the vengeance of his temple.

Dimitru Duduman was a Romanian prophet to America who saw it all in a series of dreams and visions and reported on them.

You are absolutely right about the real intention of Ahmadinejad. He is telling Bush, ” peace is only whenj you follow the truth path, which he believes it is his own path.

You just waite..there will be a mashroon could over a city very soon. No is this Tehran?! well lets see it.

http://www.swimmingwith.com Will

If there will be wars, bombs and bullet it will not be by Gods hands it will be by ours. Since the beginning of time we human beings have USED God as much as worshipped him. We use him to further our own agendas. Nothing has changed. Actually, we live in a beautiful world. It is our fear and hate that distracts us from this beauty. We are in fact all SOULMATES and it’s our minds that create any differences or seperateness that we now seem to want to accentuate with wars, bomb and bullets.
LOVE THOSE WHO HATE YOU.

AhmadiNejad’s letter to Bush is not, as has been widely reported in the left-leaning western press an offer of peace or in the more reactive right-wing press the ramblings of a deranged Islamopath.

It is simply an offer to the leader of the free world to embrace Islam. Whilst this sounds strange to a secular western mind, within the context of AhmadiNejad’s belief system the offer is a heartfelt and totally sane expression of belief from a devout Islamist who is following the precepts of both his religion and his forebears.

It is also a precursor to offensive war.

Under Islamic law, and in this case with a Shia spin, before an Islamic leader wages offensive war against an infidel nation, certain precepts must be fulfilled: a kind of Islamic “Due Process” where 1 months notice of offensive war is given.

This process includes:

1 Listing the infidel’s sins against Allah.
2 Offering Islam as a solution to those sins,
3 If they do not embrace Islam, then dhimminitude should be offered (i.e. subjugation to the rule of Islam with appropriate taxes (jizya) and humiliation) and finally, if this is not accepted,
4 Offensive war, death and eternal damnation.

AhmadiNejad’s letter to Bush fulfills the first two stages of this due process, and whilst not a full declaration of offensive war it does conform to the initial precepts required before offensive war is waged. It will be interesting to see the contents of a second letter to be sent to the Pope in the next few days.

The bulk of the letter is a list of the President’s crimes under Shariah Law: this takes up about 60% of the text. The remaining text is peppered with quotes and semi quotes from the Koran, and to the uninitiated reads like an offer to find common ground. However, the important paragraph comes at the tail end of the letter and is from The Koran, chapter 3 verse 64 (usually written The Family of Imran 3.64). In order to understand it one needs to look at specific parts of the Koran and the way that AhmadiNejad quotes and paraphrases these throughout his letter.

In a paragraph referred to above AhmadiNejad says:

“The holy Koran stresses this common word and calls on an followers of divine religions and says: [3.64] Say: O followers of the Book! Come to an equitable proposition between us and you that we shall not serve any but Allah and (that) we shall not associate aught. With Him and (that) some of us shall not take others for lords besides Allah, but if they turn back, then say: Bear witness that we are Muslims. (The Family of Imran).”

Note the incorrect punctuation in this paragraph, which quotes 3.64 (quoted in full without punctuation errors below). The phrase “associate aught with him” is a direct reference to the the Christian belief that the God of the Bible, i.e. the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit are one God (The Trinity). From an Islamic perspective the great crime of Christian priests is to corrupt the true message of Jesus (a prophet within Islamic Theology not the Son of God) and raise Christ to the status of God, i.e. associate another with Allah. In Islamic belief Allah is indivisible and has no associates. What AhmadiNejad means by equitable proposition is not an equitable arrangement between those who believe in different Theologies, but an offer to embrace Islam and as a result achieve an equitable position. It is the choice of quote, which makes this offer specific: listed below other passages (from the Koran) containing the same phrase.

[3.64] Say: O followers of the Book! Come to an equitable proposition between us and you that we shall not serve any but Allah and (that) we shall not associate aught with Him, and (that) some of us shall not take others for lords besides Allah; but if they turn back, then say: Bear witness that we are Muslims.

[4.36] And serve Allah and do not associate any thing with Him and be good to the parents and to the near of kin and the orphans and the needy and the neighbor of (your) kin and the alien neighbor, and the companion in a journey and the wayfarer and those whom your right hands possess; surely Allah does not love him who is proud, boastful;

[4.48] Surely Allah does not forgive that anything should be associated with Him, and forgives what is besides that to whomsoever He pleases; and whoever associates anything with Allah, he devises indeed a great sin.

[5.72] Certainly they disbelieve who say: Surely Allah, He is the Messiah, son of Marium; and the Messiah said: O Children of Israel! Serve Allah, my Lord and your Lord. Surely whoever associates (others) with Allah, then Allah has forbidden to him the garden, and his abode is the fire; and there shall be no helpers for the unjust

[6.151] Say: Come I will recite what your Lord has forbidden to you– (remember) that you do not associate anything with Him and show kindness to your parents, and do not slay your children for (fear of) poverty– We provide for you and for them– and do not draw nigh to indecencies, those of them which are apparent and those which are concealed, and do not kill the soul which Allah has forbidden except for the requirements of justice; this He has enjoined you with that you may understand.

[6.163] No associate has He; and this am I commanded, and I am the first of those who submit.

The principles of a declaration of offensive war in Islam is to give your enemy an opportunity to see the error of his ways, and either accept Islam or accept dhiminitude (the superiority of Islam) and come under Islamic rule or accept offensive war and death. I have quoted below the work of some Islamic scholars and their opinion on this matter.

1 “The Biography of the Apostle”, part 4, Ibn Hisham (page 134):

“Muhammad sent Khalid Ibn al-Walid to the tribe of the children of Haritha and told him: ‘call them to accept Islam before you fight with them. If they respond, accept that from them, but if they refuse, fight them.’ Khalid told them: ‘Accept Islam and spare your life.’ They entered Islam by force. He brought them to Muhammad. Muhammad said to them: ‘Had you not accepted Islam I would have cast your heads under your feet”’ (refer to page 134, and also see Al Road Al Anf, part 4, pp. 217, 218. You will find the same incident).

2 Narrated in Ibn Hisham, part 4, p. 11 (“Biography of the Prophet’), and The Chronicle of the Tabari”, part 2, p. 157, Ibn Kathir, “The Prophetic Biography”, part 3, p. 549, and “The Beginning and the End”, Ibn Khaldun, the rest of part 2, p. 43 and on °Al-Sira al-Halabiyya, Vol. 3. p. 18 Al Road Al ANF, part 4, p. 90, by Al Sohaily

When Muhammad and his followers were about to attack Mecca to subjugate it to Islam, his adherents arrested Abu Sufyan, one of Mecca’s inhabitants. They brought him to Muhammad. Muhammad told him: “Woe to you, O Abu Sufyan. Is it not time for you to realize that there is no God but the only God?” Abu Sufyan answered: “I do believe that.” Muhammad then said to him: “Woe to you, O Abu Sufyan. Is it not time for you to know that I am the apostle of God?” Abu Sufyan answered: “By God, O Muhammad, of this there is doubt in my soul.” The ’Abbas who was present with Muhammad told Abu Sufyan: “Woe to you! Accept Islam and testify that Muhammad is the apostle of God before your neck is cut off by the sword.” Thus he professed the faith of Islam and became a Muslim.

3 Azhar scholars Dr. Buti p. 263:

“The apostle of God started to send military detachments from among his followers to the various Arab tribes which were scattered in the Arab Peninsula to carry out the task of calling (these tribes) to accept Islam If they did not respond, they would kill them. That was during the 7th Higira year. The number of the detachments amounted to ten.”

4 Dr. ’Afifi Abdul-Fattah “The Spirit of Islamic Religion,”

“Islam has approved war so that the Word of God becomes supreme. This is war for the cause of God (Holy war). Muhammad, therefore, sent his ambassadors to eight kings and princes in the neighborhood of the Arab Peninsula to call them to embrace Islam. They rejected his call. Thus, it became incumbent on the Muslims to fight them.”

“Islamic law demands that before Muslims start fighting infidels (unbelievers), they first deliver the message of Islam to them. It was proven that the prophet never fought people before he called them to embrace Islam first. He used to command his generals to do so also.”

’Umru besieged the Fortress of Babylon (south of ancient Egypt) for a full month, and that he said to the messengers of the Muqawqis, the governor of Egypt,

“There is nothing between us and you except three things:

(1) Embrace Islam, become our brethren and you will have what we have and you will be subjected to what we are subjected (in this case they would pay alms to the treasury of the state).

(2) If you refuse that, you are obligated to pay tribute with humiliation.

(3) war.

“The Muqawqis attempted to offer them something different, but they rejected it. At last, after a fight, he accepted the second condition, namely to pay tribute and to be subjugated to Islamic rule. The Muslims entered Egypt. ”

Whilst AhmadiNejad’s letter does not specify offensive war, it does not have to. By listing The Presidents “crimes” and offering a solution, i.e. convert or accept the rule of Islam, he has fulfilled his obligations and is allowed to wage offensive war should he choose to do so once the forbidden months are passed.

9.1″: (This is a declaration of) immunity by Allah and His Apostle towards those of the idolaters with whom you made an agreement.

“9.2”: So go about in the land for four months and know that you cannot weaken Allah and that Allah will bring disgrace to the unbelievers

“9.3”: And an announcement from Allah and His Apostle to the people on the day of the greater pilgrimage that Allah and His Apostle are free from liability to the idolaters; therefore if you repent, it will be better for you, and if you turn back, then know that you will not weaken Allah; and announce painful punishment to those who disbelieve.

“9.4”: Except those of the idolaters with whom you made an agreement, then they have not failed you in anything and have not backed up any one against you, so fulfill their agreement to the end of their term; surely Allah loves those who are careful (of their duty).

“9.5”: So when the sacred months have passed away, then slay the idolaters wherever you find them, and take them captives and besiege them and lie in wait for them in every ambush, then if they repent and keep up prayer and pay the poor-rate, leave their way free to them; surely Allah is Forgiving, Merciful.

“9.6”: And if one of the idolaters seek protection from you, grant him protection till he hears the word of Allah, then make him attain his place of safety; this is because they are a people who do not know.

“9.7”: How can there be an agreement for the idolaters with Allah and with His Apostle; except those with whom you made an agreement at the Sacred Mosque? So as long as they are true to you, be true to them; surely Allah loves those who are careful (of their duty).

These passages, combined with the letter point to a date that varies depending on the interpretation of “the forbidden months”. It is also important to first note that the Koran differentiates between a defensive war and an offensive war.

[2:194] During the Sacred Months, aggression may be met by an equivalent response. If they attack you, you may retaliate by inflicting an equitable retribution. You shall observe GOD and know that GOD is with the righteous.

If you are attacked during the forbidden months, then it is perfectly acceptable to retaliate. From the Islamic perspective, the continuing existence of Israel, the continued “occupation” of Iraq and the “War on Terrorism” being regarded from an Islamic perspective as an offensive war on Islam

Some scholars interpret this as four lunar months as mentioned in 9.2 as a continuous period from the date of the declaration. Others interpret is as the Holy months in the Islamic calendar but this is also in dispute as to which months those are as the Koran fails to name. The interpretation a believer adheres to is dependant on whether the scholar comes from a Shia or Sunni background. The Sunni interpretation possibly as a result of the overlaying of Islam on an earlier Arab tradition specifies the 7th 11th 12th and 1st months. In the standard Saudi (Wahabi) translation available free in all Mosques, square brackets are placed in the text containing a descriptor to specify this.

The Shia tradition is overlaid on a Persian history, and lacking the Sunnah tradition derives interpretation directly from the Koran. As AhmadiNejad is Shia, it is this interpretation that needs to be focused on. The Shia interpretation focuses on a mixture of the ayats (verses) that describe permitted actions during these months and simple common sense. Some of these verses are ambiguous and can be taken either way, for example

[2:194] During the Sacred Months, aggression may be met by an equivalent response. If they attack you, you may retaliate by inflicting an equitable retribution. You shall observe GOD and know that GOD is with the righteous.

However other verses stretch logic to breaking point to fit the Sunni interpretation.

[9:2] Therefore, roam the earth freely for four months, and know that you cannot escape from GOD, and that GOD humiliates the disbelievers.

The implication here is of four consecutive months for the simple common sense reason that it does not say “roam freely for a month then fight for three months then roam freely for three and then fight again for five before you start all over again”. This is made even clearer in the chapter Repentance:

[9:37] Altering the Sacred Months is a sign of excessive disbelief; it augments the straying of those who have disbelieved. They alternate the Sacred Months and the regular months, while preserving the number of months consecrated by GOD. They thus violate what GOD has consecrated. Their evil works are adorned in their eyes. GOD does not guide the disbelieving people.

The fact that the Islamic calendar has 354 days in a 12 month year as opposed to the 365 day year of the Gregorian calendar means that the dating system in the west and the dating system in Islam are continually slipping: an Islamic winter festival will eventually become an Islamic summer festival. This has provided numerous problems for Muslims living in the far north as fasting during Ramadan makes not eating or drinking during daylight hours in a part of the world where the sun never sets a real test of faith.

In 2006, under the four consecutive month of the 12th, 1st 2nd and 3rd month of the Islamic calendar places the end of the holy months at either the 27th or 28th of May depending on the first sighting of the new moon. At that time the months in which fighting is prohibited are over. It is important to note here that “the forbidden months” refers specifically to the Islamic inauguration of offensive war. Exceptions to this refer to defensive actions as discussed above.

In the context of AhmadiNejad’s letter as a warning before a declaration of offensive war, the end of the forbidden months in the Gregorian calendar for 2006 is either the 27th or 28th of May depending on the first sighting of the new moon. After this date, fighting is permissible. It is interesting to note that 1 month would appear to be an accepted time frame for the warning to be heeded. This is taken from the quotation above from Dr Afifi Abdul-Fattah

’Umru besieged the Fortress of Babylon (south of ancient Egypt) for a full month, and that he said to the messengers of the Muqawqis, the governor of Egypt…..” (full quote above)

Any time after this, and before the commencement of the next group of holy months, AhmadiNejad is free to pursue an all out offensive war.

Given AhmadiNejad’s desire to “wipe Israel off the map” and his absolute belief in the return of the Mahdi brought on by a final battle between good and evil in the land of the two holy places should give us some cause for concern. The important point here is not whether a western secularists believe in Koranic prophecies, but whether or not AhmadiNejad believes them.

From AhmadiNejad’s perspective, the world is currently full of the signs of the end of times as specified in the Koran:

“The Hour (of Judgement) is nigh, and the moon is split in two.” (al-Qamar 54:1).

This has been interpreted by some scholars as happening in 1969. The Americans went to the moon, brought some rocks back, and therefore the moon was split in two. Belief followed by fact. Many of these signs are narrated in hadiths, which do not form part of the Shia tradition, but the return of the Mahdi is central to AhmadiNejad’s belief system. Over the past couple of years he has massively expanded the Mahdi Mosque, and driven a new road through the centre of Tehran to the Mosque, Mahdi Avenue. Shia websites around the world echo this and are full exaltations to this hidden imam. His nuclear ambitions must be interpreted within this context. We will find out one way or another on or after the 28th or 29th of this month.

Adan

Imagine people with such imaginations having power…they end making their own prophecies and fullfill it!…

You are such a moron of unimaginable proportions…you are an example of everything that is wrong with humanity…

We have waged centuries of war…most of which have been brought upon by people with your kind of imagination….

For your information Iran was once a democratic nation, consuming American culture and ideas…then the C.I.A had a brilliant idea of helping to overthrow the democratically elected government..and helped install The Shah regime whose brutality created a nasty reaction from the Iranian people, and thus give birth to the Ayotallah’s….just as America helped restore the dictator of Kuwait after rescuing him from another…..and is currently supporting the brutal regime in Saudi Arabia…

You can’t judge the American people through the action of few cynical leaders in their history…and the same goes…

Let’s all hope the best for our race…one day we will populate this Solar System and beyond…all we have to do is survive the sick imaginations of men/women like the one who wrote this post!